HUMAN

Name: Eric Kelly

Residence: Knik, Alaska

Age: 52

Occupation: I work as a sprinkler fitter doing fire protection

Years involved with Iditarod: This is my first year running the Iditarod. I volunteered since 2014.

Iditarod Role: Musher

Current Location: Lakefront Hotel, Anchorage, Alaska
Date of Photo: March 3, 2022

Temperature: 68 F Indoors

What, who or how and when did you first get involved with the Iditarod?

I first became involved with the Iditarod while helping Jamaican musher Newton Marshall prep for the 2014 Iditarod.

What is your Why? Why are you here TODAY and involved with the Iditarod?

I’m here today, involved with the Iditarod because after helping Newton Marshall, a passion grew within me to work with dogs. I started working with dogs in 2014. In 2018, I got my own dog team, and with the goal of running the Iditarod. So here we are.

Tell me about just one of your most memorable Iditarod experiences.

One of my most memorable Iditarod experiences was watching Newton Marshall cross the finish line in Nome, after I’d helped him prep for the entire season to get there.

What do you know for sure?:

What I know for sure in life is you never know what to expect.